Korean Cabbage Kimchi (Crunchy Green Cabbage Kimchi)
Salt 1 kg cut green cabbage with 35 g salt for 40 minutes, turning once, and stop while the leaves bend slightly but still feel crisp, since over-brining makes them tough. Rinse lightly, drain for about 15 minutes so the seasoning clings, and toss with the carrot, scallions, and a paste of 4 tbsp chili flakes, 3 tbsp fish sauce, and 1 tbsp minced garlic by lifting and folding. Ferment at room temperature for 6 hours, then refrigerate once some liquid appears and the aroma begins to sharpen.
Quick answer
- Active time
- 40 min
- Waiting
- See the steps
- Level
- Easy
- Servings
- 4 servings
- Ingredients
- 7
About this dish
Green cabbage leaves are thinner and firmer than napa, so they take salt quickly and turn tough rather than soft when left too long.
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Wide leaves and thick stems are cut to a similar size so one part does not finish salting before the other. The moment to stop salting is when a leaf bends but still snaps between the teeth. Draining matters more than it seems: leftover rinse water slides the chili paste off the leaves and thins the brine that forms later. Julienned carrot and scallion keep the color bright, and the jar moves to the fridge once liquid starts pooling after a short room-temperature ferment.
Ingredients
Instructions
- 1
Trim the core from 1000 g green cabbage, then cut the leaves into bite-size pieces.
Keep thick stems and wide leaves similar in size so they salt evenly and stay pleasantly crunchy.
- 2
Sprinkle 35 g salt evenly over the cabbage and brine for 40 minutes.
Turn it once halfway through, and stop when the leaves bend slightly but still feel crisp, since over-brining can make them tough.
- 3
Rinse the salted cabbage lightly in cold water to remove excess salt.
Drain it in a colander for about 15 minutes, shaking gently so the seasoning will cling instead of becoming watery.
- 4
Cut 80 g carrot into thin strips and slice 50 g scallions into 4 cm lengths.
Mix 4 tablespoons gochugaru, 3 tablespoons fish sauce, and 1 tablespoon minced garlic until the chili flakes are evenly moistened.
- 5
Add the drained cabbage, carrot, scallions, and seasoning to a large bowl, then toss by lifting and folding with your fingertips.
Stop when the red seasoning reaches between the leaves without crushing the cabbage.
- 6
Pack the kimchi into a container, pressing it down lightly while leaving a little space at the top.
Ferment at room temperature for 6 hours, then refrigerate once some liquid appears and the aroma begins to sharpen.
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